


Those Good Boys

by Okadiah



Series: The Mrs. Chen Chronicles [1]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Venom (Movie 2018)
Genre: Contemplation, Especially when it comes to the goo and its host, Just fun for fun's sake, Mrs Chen knows what's up
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-18
Updated: 2018-10-18
Packaged: 2019-08-04 03:16:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,740
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16338788
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Okadiah/pseuds/Okadiah
Summary: Mrs. Chen saw everything that happened in and around her store, and she knew a lot more than that.Like Eddie. Eddie, Eddie, Eddie. And that black … whatever it was that was with him these days.





	Those Good Boys

**Author's Note:**

> Hi everyone! I really wanted to do a piece on what Mrs. Chen thought about Eddie and everything after the mess with the Life Foundation, and here we are. This was fun for fun's sake. I hope you enjoy!

Mrs. Chen saw everything that happened in and around her store, and she knew a lot more than that.

Like Eddie. Eddie, Eddie, Eddie. And that black … whatever it was that was with him these days.

Truth be told, she wasn't too surprised that something peculiar now frequented her store, especially with all the enhanced people popping out of the woodwork like they were these days. And honestly? She didn't care, either. Business was business, and who was she to question who came into her shop and spent money and who didn't? Especially if they didn’t make trouble.

But Eddie. Eddie, Eddie, Eddie. He was a different kind altogether, that was for sure, and Mrs. Chen had to admit that whatever type Eddie and his … friend were, she rather liked it when it came right down to it.

Although he'd been struggling through hard times, she'd liked Eddie even before this new change of his too. He was a good boy, even if she'd never be caught dead saying that out loud, least of all to his face. But she saw how he treated the homeless lady outside of her store. And although he didn't do anything when that bastard held a gun to her face every week demanding ‘payment’, he still understood. Still paid. Still spoke to her like a real human being, which was more than half of her regulars did.

No. Eddie was a good boy as far as she was concerned.

But then that business with the Life Foundation. Now _that_ was some bad news, and she hadn't even been a part of it. At least not directly.

In retrospect, she supposed she’d been a part of it in some way, especially now because goodness could that boy eat. Or, rather, could _they_ eat, now that she understood the situation. Kind of. Well, no, not really, but that wasn’t her business anyway. They came. They bought her food. They ate the gun-waving bastard who’d kept threatening her business and her life.

That was strange, of course, but no more so than the Avengers were in her book. She wasn't going to complain.

Besides, they never made any trouble for her, even when they could. No, Mrs. Chen understood they were good customers, even if she didn't _completely_ understand. She didn't need to.

The door to her store opened and speak of the devil. There Eddie was, offering her a casual smile as if she didn't know what he was hiding or had heard all the rumors about what he did at night, and how he did it.

"Hi, Eddie."

"Hey, Mrs. Chen."

"Hi, Eddie's friend."

To Eddie's credit, he only paused for a moment to look shyly at her before moving along.

"He said hello too, Mrs. Chen."

She smirked, and she was still smirking when the bell for the door rang again. When she looked her eyes narrowed. This wasn't anyone she knew. This was a newcomer.

And after being the store owner and proud businesswoman she was for so long, she had good instincts. Intuitions about the people who came in and what they wanted.

She did not like this man and suspected she would not like what he wanted either.

"Can I help you? " she asked. She may not like him, but it never hurt to be polite in the beginning. He might still buy something.

"Hello, are you Mrs. Chen?"

Mrs. Chen stared at the man in the prim and pressed suit. Noted the telling bulges in his jacket, the hard edge to his eyes despite his nice smile. She found she was suddenly very relieved to have Eddie and his whatever it was in her shop.

"I am," she agreed. "What do you want?"

"I've been told you see a lot. That you know just about everything that happens on this street." The man reached into his suit pocket and pulled out a couple of pictures. "Have you seen this man or this person? His name’s Eddie Brock. We don’t know what the other’s called."

Mrs. Chen kept her face carefully blank as she peered down at a photo of Eddie, and then another of that toothy black ‘parasite’ that went everywhere with him and ate bad customers. To the side she saw Eddie peek around an aisle, listening. Out of sight. Waiting.

"Why do you want to know?" she asked, refusing to make any indication one way or another.

"We believe that he might be in possession of something very dangerous," the man said seriously, his voice low. "Any information you could give would help, particularly if it leads to apprehension. Anything at all."

"Apprehension?" She frowned at him, crossing her arms. "Who are you? If you’re searching for someone, I would try the police. I’m sure they would be able to find him faster than I could."

"We’re just a concerned organization," he replied, tone clear that they would not be going further down that vein of conversation. "Have you seen them?"

Mrs. Chen stared hard at the pictures of Eddie and the black monster man, weighing her options. The newcomer waited patiently. Eddie knelt down as if looking for the sriracha sauce stored way in the back on the bottom shelf, but his eyes kept glancing in her direction.

Face blank, she said, "Nothing comes for free."

The man frowned and out of the corner of her eye, Eddie shifted but he didn't move. She hoped he wouldn't move, but she also wouldn't blame him if he did.

"All right," the man finally said before sliding several favorable bills her way. "What've you got?"

Mrs. Chen turned her nose up at him. "Can't quite recall. There are a lot of people here, you know. I can't be expected to know all of them."

The man's eyes narrowed, but to her satisfaction he obligingly slid several more her way. Much as she wanted to press her luck, she hadn't played the game this long to not know when to stop.

"Hmm," she said, sweeping the money under the counter and leaning closer. "You know, I believe I have heard about these two, now that I think about it."

"Of course," he said under his breath. "What’ve you heard, if you'd be so kind?"

"Mostly rumors. Eddie used to come by here a lot, but I haven’t seen him in weeks, and I have no idea what _that_ is. If I were you, I’d try Mao's, five blocks over," she said with a casual shrug, perfectly fine with sending this man over to Mao's for a runabout.

"Mao’s."

"Yes. I keep hearing rumors coming out of that area about this one, however." She tapped a finger over Eddie’s friend’s picture. "Then again, he’s been seen all over the city, from what I've heard. Strange fellow. Hear he eats bad people. Can't be that dangerous, if you ask me."

"So," he said in thinly masked disappointment. “Neither of them have been around here?"

"No, not in a while," Mrs. Chen lied. "I'd know if they came in my store, and it would be hard to miss them on the street."

"I see," he said flatly. "And there’s nothing else?"

"No." She smiled. "Will that be all?"

The man eyed her, but she refused to budge an inch and maintained her calm bravado, even if she was acutely aware of the guns hidden on him. Of the violence he could bring here if he found he did not like her answers. After all, Eddie _was_ here.

And she trusted him. Trusted both of them.

Thankfully, if the newcomer suspected she was lying he didn’t press.

"I guess so." He slipped a card on the counter and pressed it her way. "In case you remember anything else."

With that, he left without another word – although she still judged him for not buying anything in exchange for wasting her time, even if she was now a few hundred dollars richer. After a minute passed, Eddie slipped out from behind the aisle. He placed his purchases on the counter. Mrs. Chen began scanning them.

"He was looking for you, Eddie. You and him."

"You didn't tell him anything though. Nothing more than anyone else would know, anyway." Eddie paid her, and she carefully bagged his food – chocolate, always chocolate these days. And tater tots – before pushing it and the man’s card his way.

"Why would I?" she asked with a smirk. "You're one of my best customers, Eddie. I'd never give either of you up. So long as you keep buying from me, of course, and don’t cause trouble."

Eddie smiled and slipped the card into his pocket before taking his bag.

"You’re a blessing, Mrs. Chen."

Eddie began leaving but before he got to the door, she reached under the counter.

"Hey."

Taking the bag of Hershey kisses she hid there earlier this week, Mrs. Chen threw it at Eddie's back. She smiled when that black thing in Eddie streaked out and caught it with a strange black … tentacle thing – not that she was judging. After all, this was San Francisco. Eddie’s friend even made that crazy face which sometimes covered Eddie’s. It grinned at her.

**"Thanks, Mrs. Chen."**

"Don't get used to it," she said. After all, she couldn't just _give_ merchandise away. Not all the time anyway.

**"What if we eat more of your bad customers?"**

Mrs. Chen had no idea what Eddie’s black 'parasite' was, but it had some very good business ideas.

"Well, in that case—"

"Let's not give anyone any ideas," Eddie said, his hand open as the black tentacle monster dropped the bag of kisses into it. Eddie smiled again, and she was struck by how similar both of their smiles were. Like they were one and the same despite being so radically different. "Like he said. Thanks, Mrs. Chen."

"I'm still going to tell you if I have bad customers!" she yelled after him, and although Eddie grinned and shook his head, his black creature thing nodded and winked conspiratorially at her before vanishing back into Eddie's skin.

She couldn't help but watch them fondly as they went, even as she reached for a fresh bag of chocolate to hide behind the counter.

Yes, Mrs. Chen saw everything and knew a lot more than that.

And what she knew above all else was that those two were good boys, and they were welcome in her store anytime.

**Author's Note:**

> You can follow me for more of my Venom content on [my tumblr](https://symbrock-darling.tumblr.com/). I'm taking prompt requests there too, so if you have one, feel free to send an ask!


End file.
